Armstrong 'injected' EPO

New York - Lance Armstrong's former team-mate Tyler Hamilton claims he saw the embattled seven-time Tour de France winner use banned drug EPO the first year he won the race in 1999, CBS News reported on Thursday.

Hamilton told "60 Minutes" that he witnessed Armstrong using EPO (erythropoietin), which is designed to increase endurance by boosting production of red blood cells.

"I saw it in his refrigerator," Hamilton told the American news programme in the interview to air Sunday. "I saw him inject it more than one time like we all did, like I did many, many times."

The programme decided to release excerpts from the show Thursday.

Cancer survivor Armstrong won the Tour de France for the first time in 1999 and captured every race from 1999-2005.

Armstrong has vehemently denied using performance-enhancing drugs during his controversial cycling career.

He reiterated that stance Thursday using his social networking page Twitter to get his message across.

"20+ year career. 500 drug controls worldwide, in and out of competition. Never a failed test. I rest my case," he said.

Hamilton also tried to debunk Armstrong's defence of never having failed a drug test. Hamilton told "60 Minutes" that Armstrong told him he failed a test 10 years ago at the Tour de Swiss, just prior to competing in the 2001 Tour de France.

Hamilton, who admits using performance-enhancing drugs, retired from cycling in 2009 after a second positive drug test.

Hamilton says Armstrong took a blood-booster before the 2000 and 2001 Tour de France races.

Armstrong "took what we all took... the majority of the peloton," Hamilton told "60 Minutes". "There was EPO... testosterone... a blood transfusion."

Armstrong is the subject of a probe by federal investigators who are trying to determine if the US Postal cycling team owes much of their success to a systematic doping programme.

The 39-year-old Armstrong retired in February after a string of disappointing results.

Armstrong initially retired from cycling after the 2005 Tour de France, but returned to competition in 2009.

He finished third in the 2009 Tour de France and most recently placed 67th in January's Tour Down Under in Australia.

Hamilton, a gold medallist in cycling from the 2004 Athens Games, is just the latest in a growing list of former teammates, ex-associates and co-workers to accuse Armstrong of cheating.

In 2010, former teammate Floyd Landis launched a series of damning allegations against Armstrong, with whom he rode in the US Postal team for several years, claiming Armstrong had used banned substances throughout his career.

A recent Sports Illustrated report cited another former member of Armstrong's inner circle, New Zealander Stephen Swart, who told the magazine the Texan was the "instigator" behind some of the team members deciding to use the banned blood booster EPO in 1995.

"He was the instigator," Swart is quoted as saying in the report.

"It was his words that pushed us toward doing it."

Armstrong called the accusations old news Thursday, letting his Twitter followers know that he has set up a web page where he tries to discredit the character of Landis, Hamilton and another former teammate Frankie Andreu.

Andreu is working with federal investigators.

Armstrong's lawyer Mark Fabiani blasted the "60 Minutes" report on Thursday.

"Hamilton is actively seeking to make money by writing a book, and now he has completely changed the story he has always told before so that he could get himself on '60 Minutes' and increase his chances with publishers," Fabiani said in a statement.

"But greed and a hunger for publicity cannot change the facts: Lance Armstrong is the most tested athlete in the history of sports: He has passed nearly 500 tests over 20 years of competition."

Armstrong ended his first tweet with "case closed" but he couldn't resist the temptation to take another shot at his critics in follow-up tweets. He did not speak directly to reporters or say whether he would try to launch a lawsuit against Hamilton.

"And in news from this century... there's an amazing bike race taking place in California. Thanks for supporting these amazing athletes," Armstrong wrote.

Armstrong is widely credited with one of the greatest comebacks in the world of sport after battling cancer and his Livestrong foundation - which raises money and awareness in the global fight against cancer - is followed by millions.